Bagged iceburg lettuce with dried out carrot shreds? I can learn to love it.

Microwave dinners with rubber chicken? A bit time consuming (4-5 mins!), but doable.

Skillet Sensations? Gourmet, romantic meal for two (Eric would make these for me in university! swoon)

Grilled cheese? Eric’s fav. ‘meal’ that I made. I’m not sure what this means.

There was a lot of love in those meals, but not much…quality. I feared the unknown with cooking, so I never really ventured out of my comfort zone.

Plus, I had crap to do. Always crap to do. Books to read. Classes to skip. MSN to chat on. Bars to hop. Heels to break in. Thanks to my sweet tooth I always enjoyed baking, but cooking never called out to me like the Betty Crocker Cake Mix in the pantry.

I was the girl who used to mix cake mix with milk and eat the raw batter straight up out of a mug. I wouldn’t make this stuff up. It was awesome.

It’s funny though, when I’m really challenged, a fire is lit inside me! Eating a vegan diet forced me to learn how to cook, enjoy the process (not just end result), and use my creativity whenever possible. When I first stopped eating animal products I lived off fake meat like veggie dogs, but that got old quickly and left me yearning forunprocessed meals made from scratch. Vegan cuisine opened my eyes to many different types of foods and ingredients and ignited a passion for cooking, dare I say, as much as baking.

If I can go from eating Lean Cuisines and bagged salad to cooking meals made from scratch, I think there is hope for every fearful cook out there! The more I cook, the less intimidated I feel; especially when it comes to cooking for others.

Which brings me to our family gathering on Sunday celebrating Eric’s birthday!

Mary (left) and Brendon are visiting us from Ireland. Brendon is my mother-in-law Margaret’s brother (one of her 10 brothers!)

I fell off the wagon for a couple years, but it was fun to make them again and use those doughnut pans that have been collecting dust. The mini and regular pans are from Golda’s Kitchen.

A pumpkin doughnut isn’t a pumpkin doughnut until you cover it in melted Earth Balance and cinnamon sugar! True fact.

I tested them again with icing sugar glaze, but the Earth Balance and cinnamon sugar mixture was by far the best! The Earth Balance added a bit of a savoury, buttery quality which was a nice contrast with the sugar.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together the vinegar, milk, pumpkin, sugar, applesauce, brown sugar (sift if clumpy), and melted Earth Balance (or other butter sub).

3. Sift in in the dry ingredients (baking powder, baking soda, spices, salt, and flours). Mix until just combined. I didn’t sift as I was lazy.

4. Using a ‘zip-lock’ baggie or pastry bag, spoon the batter into the bag and then secure it with the zip lock or rubber band. Twist the bag slightly and then cut off a hole at the corner to ‘pipe’ out the batter. Pipe the dough around the circle and gently flatten down with slightly wet fingers to smooth. Repeat.

5. Bake for 10-12 minutes at 350F or until they gently spring back when touched. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes before carefully using a butter knife to remove. Place on cooling rack for another 10-15 minutes.

6. Cinnamon Sugar: Melt Earth Balance in a small bowl and dip the cooled doughnuts into butter one at a time. Transfer the dipped doughnut into a bag with the cinnamon sugar and shake until coated thoroughly. Doughnuts keep for 2-3 days.

These doughnuts were a hit at the party! Everyone seemed to love them.

Of course, you can leave the cinnamon sugar off, but I highly recommend it. ;)

This is the post that never ends…

Next up, my all-time favourite vegan chocolate cupcake recipe made another appearance! Everyone always requests these when we have a family get together. I added a little POM juice and almond extract instead of almond milk and vanilla to give the frosting a bit of fruity flavour. It was decent, but I definitely prefer my Spiced Buttercream over this one.

Rosemary, Olive oil, and sea salt flavour. I was going to make my favourite Salt and Vinegar chips, but I wasn’t sure if everyone else enjoyed S&V, so I opted for the safe flavour. If I was making them for just myself, I would have made the salt & vinegar by a landslide! They really do taste like salt & vinegar chips.

The rosemary-olive oil-sea salt chips were the biggest hit of the night and there was not a chip to be found after we made our round.

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Rosemary Olive Oil Sea Salt Chips

Ingredients:

10 medium potatoes (estimate only)

4-5 tbsp minced rosemary

2 tbsp olive oil

Sea salt (I used Herbamare) and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1. Preheat oven to 400F and line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.

4. Bake for 30 minutes at 400F. After 30 minutes, flip, and bake for another 10-20 minutes (watch closely) until crispy and golden. Season to taste (they were better with even more Herbamare, don’t be shy!).

My mother-in-law made her famous chicken pasta (with a vegan one for me), Dave & Ewa brought appetizers, and Mary and Gerry brought a salad. We had so much great food.

My plate: Vegan Cheeze burger with tomato, cuke, avocado, rosemary chips, sautéed mushrooms, salad, and I went back for some vegan pasta after I cleared my plate.

For dessert, I had a doughnut, half a cupcake, and lots of fresh cherries.

Our niece Gabriela helped with Eric’s birthday candles. :)

After gifts, we Skyped with some family in Ireland!

And then Brendon broke out the shots! and more shots. and more shots. ;) I could not partake as the Baby Guinness shots weren’t vegan. I was a bit bummed about that because I love doing shots (I’m weird)…so I drank my wine like a champ instead.

Eric and I currently have an invitation to go to Ireland and stay with Mary and Brendon for as long as we want. They even said they’d give us a key to their house!

(I doubled checked this statement Monday morning after the alcohol wore off and it still stands.) Whew.

I just ordered a doughnut pan and can’t wait to try out the recipe! And the black bean burgers. And the cupcakes.
I think I’ll have to have a dinner party so I have an excuse to make all this food.
Definitely go to Ireland! Such a beautiful country, so much to see, especially outside of Dublin, and the people I met were incredibly kind. If you can, go to the Dingle Peninsula – it was definitely my favourite spot on my trip.

Those doughnuts (among everything else) look AMAZING! I can’t wait to make them… although I do have to say they’ll have to wait a little while because I’m not quite ready to give up on summer and start with the “fall” foods yet!

happy belated birthday to eric! (we should have sung a second verse of happy bday on saturday eve!).
wow, you’ve come a long way in your cooking and baking journey, angela! i really like this: “There was a lot of love in those meals, but not much…quality.” now you’ve got both!

Also, I’d like to follow up by saying that you do such a wonderful job showing people that they can eat great without eating animal products. All it takes is a touch of effort and some creativity and you can eat like a queen- your recipes are truly inspirational!

These are so cute Ange!!! They remind me of the mini donuts that we have at the St Jacob’s Farmer’s Market here – but vegan and SO much more healthy! I’d be completely dredging mine in cinnamon sugar. I’m sure your family loved these! And I’m on the same page as you with the sauteed mushrooms – the best topping ever!!

You must go to Ireland!!! I cannot wait til the day that we can go back! What a feast you made. Your family has got to LOVE coming to your house for parties + dinners. Mushrooms are probably my favorite burger topping as well. :) The doughnuts look so thick and puffy…yumm

LOVE this post! I feel the same way about cooking…wanting to eat healthy foods and make them delicious has made me an everlasting chef! What a feast you had…I’m definitely breaking out the doughnut pan and my stash of pumpkin to make those…perfect introduction to fall!

It looks like you all had a blast! Is it just me or are the foreign family members usually the most fun? My mom’s side is all from Puerto Rico and when they get together the pina coladas and rum shots just flow and flow. I’m way excited to try those dougnuts, I really am drooling over here :D

As a reader of your blog in Ireland, I would recommend bringing a raincoat:-) But you will love it here. If you could get Irish people more into pumpkin it would be great, suprisingly hard to get here and those doughnuts look amazing!!!!

I used to never cook as well. But similar to you, now that I am vegan I find cooking to be more of an exploration and less of a chore. I love trying new grains and veggies and preparing things in new ways!

The first time I made donuts in my mini donut pan, it never occured to me how on earth to get the batter in it without making a giant mess. Thank goodness for plastic baggies! LOL. Can’t wait to make these – pumpkin baking in my oven makes my kitchen smell like fall, and I”m SO ready for fall!!

I’m still terribly afraid of cooking for anyone else… I seem to keep telling myself that I have strange tastebuds and so no one else will like what I cook. I know it’s silly and probably not true… but it’s still hard to get over it!

If those cinnamon sugar doughnuts taste anything like those cinnamon sugar soft pretzels that you can get from Auntie Anne’s, then that recipe is going to the top of my “recipe bucket list”, I swear.

I love family gatherings! My side of the family is from Newfoundland so it’s always a blast. Of course we only get to see them every once in a while since we live on the opposite coast now. I am craving pumpkin now…

What a feast! One thing I want to do is start throwing more dinner parties… I know after a few it’ll get easier, plus they are just so much fun! I’m excited for another one of your chip recipes, although salt + vinegar would be my first choice too!

Amazing post Angela! There isn’t a time of year when pumpkin and nutmeg aren’t welcome in my belly. I’m off sugar (and on apple cider vinegar) due to a recurring scalp FUNgus I picked up in Ghana. Have you tried coconut butter instead of the margarine?

I second the “amazing post!” I am absolutely in the transition from “immediate gratification” meals (that frankly aren’t gratifying) to properly cooking! Right now I’m making a recipe here or there and it still seems like a big deal to get the ingredients and actually do it. I’m at home with my parents because a tornado hit my rental house and even they don’t really cook and get surprised when I attempt something new. I’m moving into an apartment this week and get to (!) restock my new kitchen from scratch. I *am* going to learn to cook fresh, healthy food for myself. To determination and regaining my “freedom”! :D

What a fun time! I am slowly working on becoming a cook. I can cook, but I don’t really consider myself a “cook” because I’m still trying to expand on what currently seems like a limited amount of items. I want to be able to cook without needing a recipe in front of me! I am just starting to be able to not need a recipe for meals that I have made a million times. I just like having the backup right in front of me so I can be sure I’m doing it right!

I know this is a horrible comparison but those donuts reminded me of the litte mini cinnamon sugar donuts that you can get at the fair! I used to love those! In addition, donuts plus pumpkin?! Sounds like a definite fall winner to me! :)

Looks like you guys had a GREAT time. I’ve been avoiding bringing pumpkin into my kitchen. I’m not ready to accept that Fall is just around the corner. Great job on the doughnuts. I’ve been trying to make gluten-free doughnuts for awhile now with coconut flour. I will be successful, one of these days. And when I am, I will add the cinnamon sugar. Mmm like the mini doughnuts at the Calgary Stampede. Man those are delicious!

Ugh, I’ve had way too much sugar today (*tons* of Nutella, a Cadbury Milk Chocolate McFlurry, a king sized Snickers bar and I just had some Belgian waffle) – I can’t even look at the donuts now. But if I weren’t feeling ill, I’m sure they’d taste great!

I love Irish accents! I just listened to an entire book on tape, where the narrator had an Irish accent. The book was horrible, but I stuck with it for the beautiful, lilting cadence of the narration! haha

Mmmmmm!!! Omgnnesssss I loooove pumpkin stuff and I’m glad that Fall is already here Kind of! At least in my mind and yours :P I love how you squeezed the better in there–I wouldn’t have thought of that. :D

Wow, could the pumpkin donuts look any more scrumptious?! I think not. I will be making these once I pick up a donut pan from the store. Angela, do these freeze well? Would you suggest waiting to roll them in Earth Balance, cinnamon, and sugar until after they are out of the freezer?

Found your blog after I was diagnosed with High Cholesterol/anemic/pernicious and otherwise..?. ugh. so..i have been eating clean for 2 months. what a novel idea. so, i am a newbie.. my question. IS cane sugar/brown sugar…healthy for you? on a clean diet? What is the best sugar or is there such a thing? thanks for your blog. (and those doughnuts are looking good…) I am of Irish decent..went to Scotland/wales/england..Hubby had to go to hospital and get his knee drained (and then went home and got a total knee)..missed Ireland..must go back! We went on the Med. cruise last Nov. and LOVEd VENICE! we want to go back. I need to feel better so we can travel again.

First thing on my to-buy list? A donut pan :)
You guys should seriously go to Ireland if you can! Then blog and/or video the experience! Going to Ireland sounds great ^^
Now, after I get the donut pan, time to make these cinnamon sugar pumpkin donuts, chocolate cupcakes, and w/e else on this post!

What a fantastic blog post! Damn you are good! I recently became “raw” (about 85%) and I have become extremely passionate about raw food. So much that I enrolled to be a certified Raw Food Chef. Now- I’m serious. I AM/WAS the WORST cook ever… I could make NOTHING. Now I am so passionate about it and I’m going to teach “uncooking” classes at my local REC center:)

I tried the original veggie burger recipe and loved it! I’ll have to give the cheesy version a try!
Reading this post made me want to throw a dinner party just so I could cook and bake and share it with people.. I may even do it! Thanks Angela!

AMAZING post! Made me drool, made me chuckle, made me get all warm and fuzzy for my own family! Your family is beautiful, and your food looks fantastically delicious! You had me at pumpkin donuts, haha :) Thanks for brightening my Wednesday!

P.s.: two days ago I was at Moes at Universal Orlando because you mentioned it in one of your posts and I remembered hehehe…it was surprisingly delicious!! loved it to be honest. maybe it was because I was starving and so exhausted after such a long day walking around and standing in line lol. a post about our food at Moes will be up soon on my site :D

make it to Greystones and eat at The Happy Pear (in county Wicklow)! I’m currently there doing an internship in prep for opening a vegan bakery back in the States. This place is a café, bakery, organic and local grocery, and juice bar. amazing place with some damn healthy food. you must check it out!

omg! you don´t have a brother whom I could marry to be part of your wonderful family?? I even used to live in Ireland and I LOOK Irish, so maybe that helps? Your family seems awesome and you look so happy. Must be the good food ;)
where in Ireland do they live? If the two of you make it there, make sure to visit West-Cork, the most beautiful part in Eire. Palm trees, sandy beaches… Looks AND feels like you are in the Carribbean!

Just wanted to let you know I made these last night but used real milk and butter instead of almond milk and earth balance, and they were awesome, even without the cinnamon sugar glaze. I was too tired to do that last night but maybe some of the leftovers will get special treatment.

I want to come to your party! lol the food looks delicious — and I love cake donuts and cinnamon sugar used to be my favorite but since I found out what terrible ingredients most donut shops use I’ve stayed clear… will definitely try whipping up some of your donuts as soon as it feels more like fall here in TX!

Ha ha, once the shots come out all bets are off! *hic*. Think you’d enjoy a trip to Ireland – especially with Eric having such hospitable relatives – but eating out as a vegan would be more a challenge I’m thinking. I don’t eat out a lot but then I am just TERRIBLE for questioning the waiting staff about what’s in the food.

I am never happier than when I’m just pottering around my kitchen trying out one (or five!) new recipes. Which is kind of bad sometimes because I have a history of eating disorders. Then again, people with EDs often tend to be foodies at heart anyway :/ I wish I had more time to cook and appreciate good food because I usually end up in a rush and it can be a challenge to make sure I’m eating the right things.

I know I’m late to the party, but the piping in a ziplock bag to get the batter in the mini doughnut pans is genius. I will definitely be doing this, as I am going through my own mini doughnut obsession. :-D

Made your Cinnamon Sugar Pumpkin Donuts last weekend for a dinner party….they were a huge hit with everybody!! Of course I waited until they were devoured to mention they were vegan…they couldn’t believe it! Thanks so much.

Just found your website a few days ago and I am totally impressed. I have booked mark several things and made a few already. Tonight I made these donuts……amazing! The recipe was very simple and quick to put everything together. They are so moist and bursting with flavor. Thank you so much for these delicious recipes. Your story, lifestyle and cooking is such an inspiration to me :)

Hey Angela– I was just reading through several of your older posts today and wanted to say how impressed I am with all the food you always prepare for your family and friends! I recently switched to a vegetarian, mostly plant-based diet (some dairy and eggs occasionally), and have had a lot of resistance from family and some friends when it comes to trying new foods. I LOVE to cook and bake, and enjoy hosting company, but I no longer want to prepare meat-based meals.

I’m curious about how your family and friends typically respond to your foods (particularly things like veggie burgers, or veganized “traditional” meals), and how you deal with those picky unhealthy eaters? I’m having a hard time not taking offense when even my husband isn’t a huge fan of some of my vegan meals that I enjoy (I use LOTS of your recipes! Love them!). Thanks!

These look yummy. My husband and I recently started a whole-food, plant-based lifestyle and I’m so happy to have found your site. I thought my foodie days were over, but your story and web-site is like a ray of hope. I’ve already made two batches of your chocolate chip cookies and tried your vegan mac and cheese and love them both. Can’t wait to try some doughnuts.

Oh my… I’m not really a donut fan but these donuts are AMAZING!!! I just made them this morning for halloween and now I’m addicted, it turned out to be the best vegan recipe I have ever tried. No one in my family could even tell they were vegan and everyone loved them! Thank you so much, definitely a keep. By the way I didn’t use the cinnamon sugar because they were already really sweet and delicious :)

Hi Angela!
Just found your awesome blog while I was looking for a vegan donut recipes. I tried the pumpkin and the plain vanilla ones dipped in sugar and they both turned out great! Cant wait to try the rest of your recipes:)
I also want to say that I really admire you for sharing your story and creating this blog. I can sincerely relate to everything that you have discussed. Diagnosed with anorexia and obsessive exercise when I was 19 yrs old and it has been a constant battle ever since. Learning to cook healthy foods and becoming a vegetarian has gotten me through the never ending struggle and brought me to a more peaceful and healthy state of mind. Keep up the great work!! I will be reading!!!!!

Hey Joanna, Wow that sounds like quite the baking endeavor! Good for you. I am not sure how these store. Our batch didn’t last long as we had a bunch of family over to enjoy them. I think the longer the cinnamon sugar sits, the more it melts into the doughnut so Im not sure how you would prepare it in advance? Maybe bake the doughnuts and then coat in cinnamon sugar just before serving?

Made these today and they disappeared fast! Brought some over for my in-laws and they loved them, too. I’ve been making vegan baked goods every weekend for a few months now, and everyone is surprised and amazed at how delicious this way of baking can be. :)

This awesome recipe is a family staple. Today I replaced all the flours w/ oat flour (just oats blended in my food processor) and it turned out beautifully. Everyone gobbled them up w/o glaze or powdered sugar.

Hello! I am a new follower to your blog and love it already! I’ve tried a couple of your recipes and they have turned out great..they were even non-veg husband approved. :) I really want to try the doughnut recipe but I don’t have a donut pan. Do you think they could be made into balls and put into the oven? Or is there another way to try them? I’m hoping to make them for Easter!

i made the donuts and they were like the most perfect thing ever!! subbed earth balance for coconut oil & reduced the sugar bc i was rolling it in sugar anyways! posted a pic on my instagram @oatmealobsessed in case you were wondering(;

Hi, This is the funniest food post I have ever read :)) I can’t tell how much I enjoyed it. Such good writing, such good food! And such fun to have with family! Keep up the good work :))) I just might get a doughnut pan to make these pumkin doughnuts too!

This donut recipe was so good! My kids loved them… I didn’t have a donut pan so I rolled up little balls out of aluminum foil and placed them in the center of each donut. Donuts came out just as nice. Wish I could post a pic

Best doughnuts ever! My friend and I made them and when my daughter (9) tasted them, she said “best doughnuts ever.” We are going to make them as an activity during her 10th birthday party later this week!

I love your blog!! So many awesome recipes! About the donuts, I was wondering if I could sub something for the pastry flour. I’m gluten free (and basically everything free: dairy, eggs, soy, corn…ugh), and I haven’t come across GF pastry flour. Any suggestions? Thank you!

This is my all time favourite fall donut recipe! The donuts are so light and fluffy. They have a great taste and with the butter and cinnamon sugar coating, heaven! 😍
Even my mom who HATES pumpkin devours these donuts.